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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Slow Cooker Lamb Stew

I put a lot of love into this stew yesterday and it definitely paid off. This cooked low and slow all day filling my house with the amazing smell of rich lamb stew. The cut of meat I used was lamb osso bucco, which is the shank cut into pieces with the bone. I like to keep the bone in while cooking the stew because it imparts a lot of great flavor. If you cannot find that cut of meat, you can use lamb shoulder or boneless lamb stew meat. It will taste delicious no matter what.

Now that Layla is eating some meat, I pureed some of the vegetables and a little piece of lamb for her. I tried to use the least fatty part of the lamb for her to eat.

1. In a large deep skillet coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil and bring to med-high heat. Season lamb with salt, pepper and flour on all sides. Add lamb to the pan and brown on all sides. Do not rush this step, it takes around 10-15 minutes per batch (You only have to work in batches if there is too much meat to fit into the skillet, do not over crowd) Once all the meat is browned, transfer to slow cooker.

2. In the same skillet, add in carrots, potatoes and onions. Season with a little salt and pepper and add in the dried thyme. Cook 8- 10 minutes until vegetables are warm and slightly brown. Transfer to the slow cooker with lamb.

3. To the same skillet, add in 1 cup of white wine and scrape off any brown bits from the bottom of the pan; cook 1-2 minutes. Add in broth and cook addition 1-2 minutes. Pour mixture over lamb and vegetables in the slow cooker. Add in fresh rosemary, thyme and bay leaves to the slow cooker.

4. Cover and cook on low 8 hours or high for 5 hours. Around 45 minutes before serving, add in mushrooms. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.

I put a lot of love into this stew yesterday and it definitely paid off. This cooked low and slow all day filling my house with the amazing smell of rich lamb stew. The cut of meat I used was lamb osso bucco, which is the shank cut into pieces with the bone. I like to keep the bone in while cooking the stew because it imparts a lot of great flavor. If you cannot find that cut of meat, you can use lamb shoulder or boneless lamb stew meat. It will taste delicious no matter what.

Now that Layla is eating some meat, I pureed some of the vegetables and a little piece of lamb for her. I tried to use the least fatty part of the lamb for her to eat.

1. In a large deep skillet coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil and bring to med-high heat. Season lamb with salt, pepper and flour on all sides. Add lamb to the pan and brown on all sides. Do not rush this step, it takes around 10-15 minutes per batch (You only have to work in batches if there is too much meat to fit into the skillet, do not over crowd) Once all the meat is browned, transfer to slow cooker.

2. In the same skillet, add in carrots, potatoes and onions. Season with a little salt and pepper and add in the dried thyme. Cook 8- 10 minutes until vegetables are warm and slightly brown. Transfer to the slow cooker with lamb.

3. To the same skillet, add in 1 cup of white wine and scrape off any brown bits from the bottom of the pan; cook 1-2 minutes. Add in broth and cook addition 1-2 minutes. Pour mixture over lamb and vegetables in the slow cooker. Add in fresh rosemary, thyme and bay leaves to the slow cooker.

4. Cover and cook on low 8 hours or high for 5 hours. Around 45 minutes before serving, add in mushrooms. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.